Michael James Maunder of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, has been disqualified from managing corporations for five years for his involvement in three failed companies.

Between 2017 and 2020, Mr Maunder was a director of the three companies that went into liquidation:

• Digital Rebl Pty Ltd ACN 623 016 464 (Digital Rebl);
• Media Rebl Pty Ltd ACN 623 016 491 (Media Rebl); and
• Business Rebl Pty Ltd ACN 625 534 081 (Business Rebl).

Digital Rebl and Media Rebl operated a business known as Rebl Corp which arranged finance agreements between customers and financiers in exchange for certain marketing rights from the customers.

In making its decision, ASIC found that Mr Maunder:

• failed to exercise his powers and discharge his duties with due care and diligence in relation to all three companies;
• engaged in conduct to gain an advantage for himself or cause detriment to Business Rebl;
• allowed Digital Rebl to provide loans to and accept services from related entities without agreements in place to recover the loans, or pay for the services;
• Allowed Media Rebl to provide services to, provide loans to and accept loans from related entities, without any agreements in place to repay or recover any of these funds; and
• Failed to prevent Digital Rebl and Media Rebl from incurring debts when there were reasonable grounds for suspecting both companies were trading while insolvent.

Total deficiency across the three companies was approximately $5.6 million, $3.7 million of which was owed to unsecured creditors.

In making the decision to disqualify Mr Maunder, ASIC relied on supplementary reports lodged by the liquidator of Digital Rebl and Media Rebl, Dane Hammond of Worrells Solvency and Forensic Accountants.

ASIC assisted the liquidators of Business Rebl, William Robson of Robson Cotter Insolvency Group, to prepare a supplementary report by providing funding from the Assetless Administration Fund.

Mr Maunder is disqualified from managing corporations until 23 March 2026.

Background

Section 206F of the Corporations Act gives ASIC the power to disqualify a person from managing corporations for up to five years if, within a seven-year period, the person was an officer of two or more companies that were wound up and the liquidators lodge reports with ASIC about each company’s inability to pay its debts or alleging misconduct.

ASIC maintains a banned and disqualified persons register that provides information about people who have been disqualified from:

• involvement in the management of a corporation;
• auditing self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs); or
• practising in the financial services or credit industry.